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Tragic Discoveries from the Canadian Indigenous Schools and other Events

Khalid Elhassan July 27, 2021 37 min

Painting by Kent Monkman of the tragic seizure of Indigenous children by the RCMP to place in mandatory boarding schools. Pintrest

The Nazis' tragic transformation of children into SS monsters — Members of the 12th SS Panzer Hitler Youth Division. Bundesarchiv Bild

24. In a Tragic Twist, the Nazis Transformed Hitherto Innocent Children Into Fanatics, Monsters, and War Criminals

To put German children on the war’s front lines, a plan was approved in 1943 for the formation of an SS division comprised of Hitler Youth – the 12^th SS Panzer Hitlerjugend. The Hitler Youth division fought in Normandy in 1944, where it gained a reputation for ferocious fanaticism. The Nazified kids committed their first atrocity of note before they had even seen combat, when they massacred 86 civilians in Ascq, France, on April 1, 1944. A few months later, in the Normandy Campaign, the Hitler Youth division added to its infamy when it massacred Canadian prisoners of war in what became known as the Ardenne Abbey Massacre.

Hitler and members of the Hitler Youth, many of whom met a tragic death in WWII's closing days in the Battle of Berlin — Hitler and members of the Hitler Youth, many of whom met a tragic death in WWII’s closing days in the Battle of Berlin. Spartacus Educational

As the situation grew even more dire for Germany, the Nazis increasingly turned to their youth organization, and by 1945, Volkssturm units – the Nazi militias – routinely drafted Hitler Youth members as young as twelve-years-old into their ranks. As the curtain fell on the Third Reich, Hitler Youth units played a conspicuous role in the last days of the Battle of Berlin. In a tragic last stand, they fought so ferociously for their namesake that only two members of a children’s unit that manned the Nazis’ last line of defense survived.

Written by

Khalid Elhassan

A lifelong history buff, I developed a particular passion for WW2 history as a child, when I spent hours listening to my grandfather, enraptured, as he recounted his wartime experiences in the British East African Campaign and with the British 8th Army in North Africa.

I graduated with a history BA from George Mason University, then went on to get a JD from the University of Virginia School of Law. After lawyering for a decade, I moved to sunny Rio de Janeiro and a less demanding career, opening a tourism agency in Copacabana.

A big chunk of my free time is spent blogging (you can follow me on Quora https://www.quora.com/profile/Khalid-Elhassan ) or freelance writing, mostly about my favorite subject, history.